Part of: Mace Federal Removal (Berg v. Bryant → D.S.C.) · Berg v. Bryant (and Bryant's Third-Party Complaint against Mace) · Assignment Desk Works, LLC v. Alexis Berg · Musgrave v. Mace (2:25-cv-01823-RMG) · Litigation Overview & Court-Filing Index
Under oath, former Nancy Mace strategist says SC congresswoman asked him to 'blackmail' her ex
Under oath in a deposition, Mace's former campaign strategist Wesley Donehue testified that she asked him to 'blackmail' her ex-fiancé Patrick Bryant over property and photos, not to contact police, and that he refused. Mace contests the characterization; all parties deny the most serious allegations; litigation is ongoing.
Caitlin Byrd ·
"you used the word 'blackmail.' That was actually a word I was using, too... 'Like she's asking me to blackmail someone.'... asking me [to] do something that I thought was illegal.", Wesley Donehue, deposition testimony
The Post and Courier, front page, Friday, May 23, 2025. The deposition report ran as the above-the-fold "COURTS" lead. Credit: The Post and Courier.
Post and Courier reporter Caitlin Byrd reported on May 23, 2025 that Mace's former campaign strategist Wesley Donehue gave sworn deposition testimony directly contradicting Mace's public framing of her dispute with ex-fiancé Patrick Bryant. According to Donehue's testimony, he stated that Mace's initial instinct was not to call police but, in his characterization, to use the information she had about Bryant as personal and financial leverage.
Donehue testified that he pushed back forcefully:
"Nancy, as your campaign consultant, if it ever comes out that you knew of women being harmed and you didn't do anything about it, your career is over.", Wesley Donehue, deposition testimony
He described the consequences of refusing her request:
"And then when I wouldn't do it, you know, I would get yelled at", Wesley Donehue, deposition testimony
Mace disputes Donehue's account. Her attorneys contested the framing of his testimony, and she has continued to describe her actions as motivated by concern for alleged victims. Bryant and Mace are adverse parties in active civil litigation in South Carolina. All allegations made in the deposition are contested; no criminal charges have been filed against Bryant in connection with these claims; litigation is ongoing.
Byrd's reporting was the national newspaper follow to FITSNews's initial publication of excerpts two days earlier. The story drew sustained attention because Donehue's sworn testimony put the origin story of Mace's public campaign, as she had told it, under direct legal challenge.
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